The Grace of God

Scripture focus

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.

Ephesians 2:8 KJV

At a glance

Summary of the chapter

Packer describes grace as personal, active kindness flowing from God's own character rather than an impersonal force or a vague background assumption — a concept, he notes, the Greek world had no real equivalent for. Yet he argues many Christians who use the word 'grace' constantly have little actual grasp of what it means, because they have not faced the four truths that make grace necessary in the first place.

Those four truths are named plainly: that human beings genuinely deserve judgment rather than approval; that God's justice actually requires a response to sin; that no effort or good behavior can earn God's favor back; and that God's grace, when given, is given freely and is never something he owes anyone. Modern assumptions about basic human goodness and a God obligated to be kind quietly erode all four.

Once those truths are actually believed, Packer argues, the gospel becomes startling good news rather than a comforting platitude: the Judge one deserved to fear turns out to be the Savior offering pardon. He traces grace as the source of a believer's pardon, the very motive behind the whole plan of salvation, and the guarantee that keeps a believer secure to the end — and insists the right response to such grace is gratitude expressed in a transformed life, not a passive shrug.

Key points

• Grace is personal kindness rooted in God's character, not an impersonal force or vague goodwill.
• Real grasp of grace depends on believing four things: our guilt, God's justice, our inability to earn favor, and grace's total freeness.
• Modern assumptions of basic human goodness quietly undercut the very truths that make grace meaningful.
• Grace is the source of pardon, the motive of the whole plan of salvation, and the guarantee of a believer's preservation to the end.
• The right response to grace understood is gratitude that shows up in changed living, not merely warmer feelings about the word.

Related Scripture

• Romans 3:23-24
• Ephesians 2:4-5
• Titus 2:11-12
• 2 Corinthians 12:9

For reflection and discussion

1. Which of the four truths underlying grace — guilt, justice, inability, or freeness — do you find hardest to actually believe about yourself?
2. How would a clearer view of your own need change your gratitude for grace already received?
3. What would a life 'compelled by grace' rather than merely informed by it look like for you this week?